hi, i'm WALLY the wonder-dale! i bring joy and endless entertainment to my mum and dad. i live in austin,TX and am quite partial to rawhide strips! hope you enjoy my musings and feel free to leave a comment!

Sunday, October 3, 2010

the Sweden trip!!

that's right folks, i've finally sat down to write this puppy up...so hold on to your boots and let me show you the lovely country of Sweden!

first a little back story business:

why did we go to Sweden (and abandon our favorite aire-dog?!)? well, my dear friend from college mentioned that when it came time for her to walk down the aisle with her swede it would definately be in his hometown of Gothenburg, Sweden. our reaction was the same as anyone's would be...YAY!!! for a destination wedding and yay for sure for a european destination :) i mean, it doesn't get any better than that...unless someone gets married in italy...in that case ben and i should definately be invited to that too!!

ahem, fast forward to september 2010 and the wedding weekend approaching!

yes...that IS a corn cob shaped like an airplane...i don't know either :)

and an emergency landing in maine, we made it to gothenburg!

Gothenburg, Sweden

a charming city on the west coast of Sweden, it is the second largest city in the country. it's history is a running list of battles for ownership of the important hub of trade. for more history visit this site. we were able to walk around the city a bit and take in some of the sights...it rained most of the time we were there (of course it was sunny the day we left...) so we didn't really get to know the city very well, but it was a nice mix of old and modern architecture and having the sea within steps is pretty awesome too.

some political propaganda...we were in the country the same weekend as their national elections which made the trip even more interesting...we got caught in a political rally!!!

some shots of one of the public gardens we toured...lovely!

Our Hosts

european destination wedding = some serious $$$ but i was given an awesome gift of a paid for plane ticket and then we were housed with a family that are friends of the groom.

this =awesome!

our hosts, Carina and Andreas were incredible and were so kind for letting us stay in their really cool house and cart our butts around gothenburg.

they introduced us to traditional Swedish foods and we had many late night discussions at the dining room table about American and Swedish politics. also in the house was a half-pint host, little Martin, the happiest little baby ever! Martin entertained us many times and was so well behaved.

Ben and i can't say enough how thankful we are to Carina and Andreas for letting us stay with them. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

The Night Before...

a little rehearsal dinner action at Tobias' parents house...excellent food and company!! thank you so much Lilimor and Matts for making us feel at home :)

Gennie's wedding was truly a handmade wedding...designed the invitations and made all the place cards, menus, etc. by hand...we arranged flowers the night before (not going to lie, i was voted most talented flower arranger :) i was in awe of the attention to detail she had for her wedding day...it was so lovely!

oh, and see all those glasses at the place setting...yeah, those are ALL for ONE PERSON!!! my kind of people, those swedes :)

Gennie and Tobias tied the knot on a saturday evening on a hundred year old boat named St. Erik. at sunset the couple held hands in the gallery and said their vows before an intimate gathering of family and close friends. it was so beautiful!

the hand off...

Ben, always entertaining the ladies!

we sailed around some archipegilos off the coast and watched the sun set. dinner was the traditional Swedish fare of herring served in a variety of ways and the main course was a very tasty halibut and perfectly steamed and seasoned potatoes. Swedish tradition dictates that married couples do not sit at the same table as each other...this was a very good way of meeting other family and friends of the couple and we enjoyed this tradition immensely and think it should be adopted for all weddings and parties.

after the wedding and dinner on the ship, the after party started up at a local pub and good times were had by all. we had a great evening with new friends and i'm so glad and happy that Ben and i got to be a part of Tobias and Gennie's wedding day!!

Day Trip to Marstrand

to say that our trip to sweden was short is and understatement...it was a micro-trip!! BUT, we did get to get out of town and sight see to the small island of Marstrand, known internationally for an annual yacht race in the summer. it has had an interesting history as a protective fort that then morphed into a large jail and then became a tourist/summer vacation location for locals and the Swedish royals. it was very picturesque and in the summer i'm sure it's booming with tourists.

me and Carina on the ferry to Marstrand...and little Martin in the pram.

on our way up the tower on the island.

laying around on the job...

you might ask what mr. wallace was up to on our 5 day journey...well, he was pining away for his mom while his uncle brian dutifully watched over him :) when we got back to austin (after a hellacious flight in which a small human kicked and screamed directly behind me for practically the ENTIRE flight from amsterdam to minneapolis...yeah awful) wally was so overcome with joy at seeing me, that he could not stop moving and did his "bone dance" for me not some stinking piece of rawhide!! it was so nice to be home and with our favorite aire-boy.

hope you all enjoy the pics...we had a great time in sweden and really we can't thank Gennie and Tobias enough for making it possible for us to be with them for their wedding celebration. and another HUGE thank you to Carina and Andreas and little Martin for allowing us to stay with them and also be our tour guides and chauffeur...thank you so much, we really enjoyed our visit!!!